Account aggregation refers to compiling information from different accounts, which may include bank accounts, credit card accounts, investment accounts, and other consumer or business accounts, into a single place. This may include a database or may be provided through “screen scraping” where a user provides the requisite account-access information for an automated system to gather and compile the information into a single page (e.g., webpage).
Financial institutions (FIs) often face legal obstacles to send financial data outside the country without explicit permission from local government authority. The approval process is usually long and unpredictable. The process often includes terms to allow third party auditors to conduct unannounced audits. Although account aggregation is not explicitly prohibited, FIs are often restricted from recommending such services to users. For example, the FIs are not allowed to partner with companies that request their users credentials (e.g., Internet banking User id/password). Further, many FIs' Risk/Compliance teams explicitly deny integration with any company if the data is hosted within U.S. to avoid the impact of the U.S. PATRIOT Act.